Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Bicycle Parking

Why We Need the Bicycle Access Bill

So, I've done a lot of posts about the Bicycle Access Bill the past few months, and I try to include one or two nuggets of information every time that get at why the bill matters and what a big difference it would make. I never got around to posting a real good story about having one's bike rejected from one's place of work. Luckily, Reuters blogger Felix Salmon has that covered:

I did end up buying a folding bike this weekend -- a Montague DX -- and proudly carried it, folded in half, into 3 Times Square thismorning, after having been told by a security guard that folding bikeswere OK to bring in to the office. Except, it turns out, they’re not.The only way you’re allowed to bring a folding bike into the building,it turns out, is if it’s packed up into a bag. Otherwise, no dice.

I suppose my next hope is that NYC's bike-friendly newtransportation commissioner will install some permanent bike parking inthe acreage of Times Square she recently pedestrianized.

I'm sure the property managers at 3 Times Square have concocted some far-fetched safety-related pretense to explain why folding bikes have to be in a bag to get inside the building. But let's get real. This is about appearances. There's some notion of office building propriety that the mere sight of a bicycle would violate.

At this point, the best hope for Felix Salmon and other cyclists rests with the New York City Council, especially transportation committee chair John Liu and Speaker Christine Quinn. How much longer will thousands of New Yorkers have to wait before they can ride to work without worrying about theft?

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Report: Road Violence Hits Record in First Quarter of 2024

Sixty people died in the first three months of the year, 50 percent more than the first quarter of 2018, which was the safest opening three months of any Vision Zero year.

April 25, 2024

Thursday’s Headlines: The Way of Water Edition

The "Blue Highways" campaign wants the mayor to convert a downtown heliport into a freight delivery hub. Plus more news.

April 25, 2024

Gotcha-Heimer! Anti-Congestion Pricing Jersey Rep. With a City Speeding Ticket Drove to Manhattan on Wednesday

New Jersey's most vociferous opponent of congestion pricing parked illegally and once got a speeding ticket.

April 24, 2024
See all posts